What is the process of creating a 3D site model from survey data?
posted 11th October 2024
Technology has played a role in transforming just about every industry in the world today, including the construction industry. One technology that has a sizeable impact on the construction industry with 3D site models. These models are important to modern building projects, helping to improve productivity.
Using 3D site models for machine control and earthworks has proven effective in operational accuracy, while enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and more.
What Are 3D Site Models?
3D site models is the creation of a three-dimensional representation of your site using specialised software. It provides detailed information on the sites size, shape, and topography.
When it comes to your building project, 3D site models can be used for machine control. The models provide accurate lines, surfaces, and points that create the sites physical environment. This data identifies horizontal and vertical points that are relevant to a reference point, enabling yo to view the model from different angles, getting a good feel of the area.
Machine control relies on positioning sensors, providing machine operators with feedback on bucket and blade positioning, along with target grades. They reference the 3D site model, ensuring all work is being carried out accurately. In addition to this, we can incorporate GPS surveying technologies, providing exact locations of points in the area.
This enables the construction team to translate the 3D site model into the real world, guiding their equipment precisely. At the same time, architects, landscapers, engineers, and others use 3D site models to try different designs and share their ideas.
The Process of Creating 3D Site Models
The first step in creating a 3D site model is gathering survey data. The survey is an important step, recording the key points and physical features, providing a baseline. The surveyors scan the area using 3D laser scanners, creating a point cloud which provides the physical components of the site. The point clouds combined with specialist software create the 3D representation of the area.
At MB Survey Solutions, we provide a complete service. We carry out accurate surveys, backed by more than twenty five years of combined experience, and then using our specialist software, we can create your 3D site model, enabling you to get your survey and 3D model under one roof.
In order to create your 3D site model, we will need your order. This sis the first step, it's when you give us the go-ahead to carry out your survey and create your 3D site model. This includes providing us with vital information, including what elements you want included on your model, such as existing conditions, boundary lines, or road access.
Once we have your order, we will arrange a day when our surveyor can visit the site and conduct the survey. Every survey includes doing some office work and research, before heading to site. Depending on the size of the area, our surveyor may be there a few hours, or for more complex and larger sites, it may be a few days.
When they return to the office, they take the data from the scanner and upload it into the specialist software we use. This helps them collect the data to create your 3D site model.
If you are in the process of building a new property or renovating an existing one, why not give MB Survey Solutions a call and let us help you with your surveying or 3D site model requirements.